Many containers, such as ice chests, tool boxes, general storage containers and the like, are provided with releasable latches to maintain a cover on the body portion of the container. By snapping or otherwise manipulating the latch or latches to a released position, the cover may be opened to gain access to the contents of the container.
It is often desirable, and known in the art, to provide many such containers with a lock receiving mechanism for use with a padlock or the like so that the container may not be opened even if the latch is released. Such lock receiving mechanism can, for example, take on the form of mating tabs which extend outwardly from the container base and cover through which a padlock may be positioned. However, such an obtrusive mechanism not only can detract from the overall appearance of the product, but also it can be easily bumped or damaged or itself can bump or damage something that it may contact. Moreover, containers having such outwardly extending lock receiving mechanisms cannot be conveniently stored in a confined area. Finally, such mechanisms do not immobilize the latch, if that be desired.
It has been suggested that, to eliminate the obtrusive nature of the prior art lock receiving mechanisms, the mating surfaces could be positioned within recesses formed in the cover and the base. While such positioning does provide a solution to some of the problems, not only does forming the required recesses potentially add costs to manufacturing the product, but also valuable storage space within the container can be lost.